Lesson
Overview
This resource is a collection of narratives written by current college students on their unique experiences around college success.
From COUN A105 at Orange Coast College - Spring 2022
Introduction to this Resource
This resource has compiled narratives on college success from two sections of COUN A105, "Strategies for College Success" taught at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, CA.
Students were given the following prompt:
Purpose
In this culminating final project called "College Success Narrative," our two COUN A105 classes will come together to create a shared resource that highlights and analyzes what college success means and looks like as community college students. Individually, you will contribute a combination of additional research and personal knowledge/experience on a specific chapter, topic, or concept that you found beneficial for your college success. Then, students will collaborate on their shared contributions through peer engagement.
At the end of this final project, this shared resource will be published in the OER Commons to serve as a resource for other college students and faculty.
Personal Narrative
While keeping in mind the "purpose" above for this final project, address the following prompt in your personal narrative:
Choose a specific chapter, topic, or combination of concepts that you found beneficial for your college success as a community college student. Discuss how you understood and applied this topic(s), based on your personal life experiences, identities, and background. Looking back at your college journey and the knowledge/experiences you've gained, imagine that you are advising your “younger self,” that comes to Orange Coast College for the first time - what wisdom would you want to share about the topic you selected?
- Make sure to synthesize and connect course content WITH your personal knowledge and experiences. You can use the following questions to help guide you in your personal narrative:
- How did you use this class material in your own life?
- How did you apply/understand/approach the topic from your own identity/background?
- What results came from using those strategies instead of not using any strategy?
- What has your journey or process been like, navigating this topic in college? (i.e. trial/error, what's working/not working, what are you still working on)
- From your lived experiences, do you have any NEW ideas, strategies, or experiences not covered in the course modules/readings? How did you modify, invent, or re-design the information or strategies?
- What personal examples or stories can you share about your (ongoing) journey with this topic?
On behalf of the instructors and students, we hope you enjoy the real-life experiences of students documented in this resource.
Books Are My Best Friend
While taking the course Strategies for College Success, I learned more about reading. Reading is very beneficial to me as a community college student because it helps me to understand everything better. Through reading books, I have been able to solve many of my problems. Books that have helped me solve problems include (but are not limited to): How to Learn Almost Anything in 48 Hours by Tansel Ali, How to be a Study Ninja by Graham Alcott, Date•Onomics by Jon Birger, Eat. Play. Love. by Emma Block, Makeup Manual by Bobbi Brown, How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie,The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman,The Little Dictionary of Fashion by Christian Dior,The One Hundred: A Guide to the Pieces Every Stylish Woman Must Own by Nina Garcia, How to Survive a Horror Movie by Seth Grahame-Smith, Goodbye Phone, Hello World by Paul Greenberg,The Cleaning Ninja by Courtenay Hartford, 50 Successful Harvard Application Essays (3rd Edition) by The Harvard Crimson, Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man by Steve Harvey, How to Study in Medical School by Armin Kamyab,The Colette Sewing Handbook by Sarai Mitnick, How to Get Straight A’s In College by Alex Rojas,The Wait by DeVon Franklin and Meagan Good and 101 Places Not to See Before You Die by Catherine Price.
Reading these books, and many more, helped me transform from being a clinically depressed, antisocial, afraid, messy, social media obsessed straight-D student with no fashion sense or purpose to being a happy, self-respecting straight-A student. If I were to advise my “younger self” about attending OCC for the first time, I would share with her all of the wonderful things I’ve learned through reading between now and then.
I’d tell her to have higher standards, and to keep being diligent in her studies. I’d also try to recommend all of the new books I’ve read and liked in the past two years.
My journey with reading is ongoing. It started when I was very little, but the first time I used a book to solve a problem I was having was in my junior year of high school. Since I am an only child with two incredibly introverted parents, I was always terrible at socializing. I got ostracized from pretty much every social hierarchy schools placed me in from elementary school through high school. Since I don’t look particularly menacing at first glance, it was always easy for me to make friends, but I could never keep them. I just acted very weird once anyone tried to get to know me. I spent most of my public school days feeling utterly unincluded among throngs of people that seemed to be doing the whole social thing well. When I was fifteen, I went through the worst ostracism I have yet endured in my life. I was a very mean person back then. I was so mean that 6 girls I used to consider my “friends” gossiped about me on this group chat I wasn’t included in. It really hurt my feelings, and it was a big wake-up call for me to stop being so judgemental and rude to people. However, I had no idea how judgemental, rude, and mean I was back then until I read How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie. That book totally transformed the way I view life and social interactions. It’s not that I was deliberately trying to hurt people’s feelings and make them dislike me before with my actions, but after reading that book, I realized that’s exactly what I did. Since I read that book at 16, I have applied it in almost every social encounter I’ve had. As a result, over the past 3 years, my social skills have improved. A sweet girl even gave me a compliment on my social skills recently, and she asked me how I managed to
be so calm when approaching new people. I recommended How to Win Friends and Influence People to the girl. She read it too, and she liked it.
A different problem I solved with reading is my grades. When I was in my sophomore year of high school, the same semester that I got ostracized from the aforementioned “friend” group, I ended a semester with almost straight D’s. I felt terrible about this, and I became clinically depressed. After that event, I had to attend summer school for 3 classes. It was so embarrassing. I loved to read, and I read a lot outside of school, but I had no idea what to do when it came to anything school related. I also found my high school curriculum to be boring. After I graduated, I vowed not to let the same thing happen in college, so I decided to spend the summer before college reading as many books as I possibly could about studying. Thankfully, once I started college, the books I had read and diligently took notes on helped me with the new curriculum. Then, I realized that I really like college, especially community college. I feel like there's something awesome to be learned from every professor who teaches at OCC, and I finally got to learn things I was actually interested in. Even the general education classes here are interesting to me because they are taught by people so devoted to their topics that they got Master’s Degrees in them. That in itself is inspiring. Now, I am close to finishing my second year of college with a 4.0 GPA thanks to the lovely books I’ve read on studying. The two study books I apply most in my daily life are How to be a Study Ninja by Graham Alcott and How to Study in Medical School by Armin Kamyab.
I was also fairly clueless about how to deal with the opposite gender until I read a few books about dating. Date•Onomics by Jon Birger taught me where to find boys, and Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man by Steve Harvey taught me how to deal with boys.
Both of these books have been very useful during interactions I have had so far with the opposite gender, and I hope to apply them more in the future.
Overall, reading has improved every aspect of my life, and I am very grateful that it exists. Reading is also something that’s covered in every college class, so it was useful to learn more about it while taking Strategies for College Success.
Asking Questions
I found many topics and concepts beneficial, and some of them I apply to my current life. One thing that I have been doing more of is asking questions. In all the modules and chapters there is always a question that I start off with and by the end of the module my question is answered because I search for the answers. The test taking and study skills was one of my favorite modules as well as the career and major exploration. Those modules were very informative on how to take notes, how to take a test and how to manage my test anxiety. They also helped me make a concrete plan, I know what I want to study and how to get there. I have also been networking and have talked with people who have my future careers. These are all things that I wasn’t told before. I have always tried to do things on my own, and it wasn’t till recently that I have realized that it is okay to ask for help and it is okay to take the help that is offered to me.
My brother and I are the first to go to college, my brother is struggling because of some mental health issues and for that reason I decided to take my time with my studies. I try to pass all my classes, while still working and helping my family with what I can. I am from a Mexican family, my dad works all the time, my mom is always busy with cleaning and taking care of my other siblings, so I feel like I owe it to them to graduate. My journey in college so far has been a bit rocky. My older brother is always trying to push me to do more and take more classes so that I can graduate as soon as possible. I try to keep organized but life is messy and sometimes interferes with my plans. I would like to be a speech language pathologist or a teacher in special education. I see how hard it is to work in this field, but I know that at the end of the day I will work to help others and that to me is rewarding. College is scary and it is difficult only if you allow it to be. If you need help then ask for it and get it, being a first-generation college student is difficult but not impossible.
One way to reduce anxiety and stress is to ask for help, to plan out what you need to achieve your goals. For example, I need to complete class X, Y and, Z by this date so that I can graduate by this year. I currently work and go to school. My plan is to get a certificate to be a speech language pathologist assistant and work in that position at the district I currently work for and work my way up from there. I started making goals both short term and long term. I have also started including both fun and academic goals to make sure I don’t miss out on certain experiences. So instead of just focusing on school and work, I include fun activities that are also personal goals of mine. I will be traveling this summer to Israel, Idaho, and Mexico. I have learned that I do not give myself time to destress and recharge. I run on little to no energy and that also affects my grades and health.
I have learned many new things about myself, for example for many years I have always tested and gotten INFP. This has been my result for the past 6 years. In high school I was in a college readiness program so I have been exposed to different assessments and have visited different universities to see my career options for the future. In this program I would take the assessment every year and every year my results would come back as INFP. This year however my result was INTJ. This shocked me, I thought about how this may interfere with my plans and to my surprise it didn’t. I didn’t think that I had changed and so I did some research on this personality type and what I read made me laugh. I am considered an independent thinker who focuses on solving the worlds problems. It is also considered the third rarest Myers-Briggs personality type, and about .5% of the population women are INTJ personality type. I was upset to find out that I was no longer INFP since that was what I had always been and the idea of me having changed was a bit scary. I even questioned if changing was a good thing. It is, changing is inevitable, its also necessary. Evolution for example, it is also necessary and sometimes its even for survival. I had focused way too much on the negative, so I stopped and decided to look at the good. There were many strengths and advantages listed about being an INTJ such as being rational, determined, loyal, and innovative. I still had many INFP traits, but I now have more of the personality type of INTJ. This module was quite important to me. I used my personality type to search careers and even consider where to live. I love nature and my alone time, so I considered somewhere like Idaho where life is much slower than it is being in a city. I find it easier to approach certain people and create relationships or even just network. I think it is important to know one’s strengths and weaknesses in order to use them to ones advantage. I will be using them to help me farther my education and learn more about myself in general. I would tell my younger self that the years it takes to get to my goal don’t matter, what matters is that I make it and to be happy. I want to look back and not regret my life or say that I didn’t enjoy my college years. I want to learn, laugh and love everything about my life and experience everything that I can while I am young and have the opportunity to.
Setting Goals
Experience as an International Student
One of the most significant struggles that I have had as a college student is time
management, a reality that I believe reflects the fact that I am from the United Arab Emirates
(UAE), where time conceive of time differently. In other words, Emirates do not stress time as
much as Americans, and so if a person is late five, ten, even fifteen minutes, people do not grow
annoyed and angry, much like they would in the United States. Regarding my academic life, in
particular, my notion of time, rooted in my culture as it is, has affected how I approach my
schoolwork and when I complete it. Put bluntly, I am inclined to wait until the last minute before
beginning an assignment or project, knowing full well that doing so will compromise its quality
and, quite possibly, lead to grades lower than I would have received had I started early and
worked incrementally. Receiving lower grades has, as one might expect, left me frustrated, and
for some time already, and even before this class, I have sought to change my habits, though to
no avail. Looking back, I believe the reason is that I did not have the tools or the strategies that
could have helped me better manage my time. For this reason, I found the module devoted to
time management the most helpful—and relevant—to my own life, so relevant that I not only
drew from it during my Spring 2022 Counseling 105 course but have drawn from it for years
already.
Of the lessons I took about how best to manage my time, one of the most salient was that
I must prioritize events in my life, positioning those that bear more importance ahead of those
that bear less. Though the takeaway is rather simple, prior to absorbing it I would struggled to
prioritize much of anything, and so devoted time to nearly everything that I came across. If I
needed to go to the gym, I went; if I needed to speak with family members or friends, I spoke to
them; if I needed to do anything, I did it, even if it was trivial and did not advance my interests.
Even though I ultimately came around to doing my schoolwork, by the time I did, I was often tired and only a few hours or so before the deadline. For this reason, I gradually learned to set aside those things that did not directly influence my education, allowing me to prioritize what
mattered and rid my life of the clutter. Without the clutter, I realized that I had more time than I
ever thought I had; in fact, I had more than enough time to do my work early and in stages, not
waiting until I was sweating and panicky before starting. Of course, this time management
strategy was not the only one that I embraced, and one that I really thought useful was not to
multi-task. I am not exactly sure where I picked up this strategy, but I imagine that it had to do
with trial-and-error, that is, the trials and errors that led me to believe that multitasking was not
in my future and should have probably not been in my past, either. As an overly-confident
youngster—I am nearing 30 now—I figured that I could do everything at once and the results
would always be the same, high. Turns out, I was wrong, and so I cast multitasking aside, doing
and finishing one task before beginning another. As I realized, I was more productive this way,
especially since my other time management strategy helped me take advantage of the 168 hours
that I had in a week.
In a world where everyone has too much to do, I chose not to multitask.
Another strategy that I found immensely useful when it came to improving my time management was the pomodoro technique, which consists of dividing the day into 24-minute segments separated by 5-minute chunks. As I recall, I was initially resistant to this technique, as I did not think that it was relevant to my life; besides, as a 20-year-old, what need did I have to methodically divide my time, as if I were in math class. Even so, I opted to use the strategy, knowing that I could not continue down the path that I had previously forged, a path where time management was almost nonexistent and wasted time was everywhere. Once I did, I recognized its value, as not only did the technique help me utilize my time more effectively, but it also helped me avoid becoming overwhelmed, which happened relatively frequently. Since I was an international student, I encountered linguistic, cultural, and other barriers that made my academic life in Orange Coast College more difficult than it may have been for native-born students. Hence, feeling overwhelmed, a feeling that the pomodoro technique helped alleviate, more so since I appreciated the intervals (admittedly, they sometimes lasted longer than five minutes for me) and how they allowed me to regain my focus and concentration. Afterwards, I returned to my work, which I was completing over the course of several days by now, finishing it well before the stated deadlines.
I enjoyed my time in Counseling 105 and, more than enjoyed, I took away information that has endured with me for roughly 10 years after finishing university. Likely, the information will continue with me for 10 more years, and then 10 more years after that, since if I have not forgotten it now—and I have not—there is no reason to think that I will forget it ever. Even so, if I had one recommendation for the class, I would have liked my professor to focus on how
different cultures think of time and how time plays out for members of these different cultures. By examining time and how other cultures consider it, OCC students, many of whom come from countries outside of the United States, may have seen more relevance in the information that the professor imparted. Nevertheless, I look back fondly on that class and on those years, more generally, knowing that I left university better than when I start, which is what I wanted when I first enrolled.
Setting Goals Pt. 2
I have had such an enjoyable time being able to take this class, I personally think
that taking a College Success class is very helpful and useful to help learn new ways to
be successful in college. I have taken a few college success classes in my past years of
college and every time I take a class like this I learn some things that are totally new to
me and that help me make college more enjoyable and a little bit easier. I have alway
never understood why I was never getting a hang of college. College has never come
easy to be and it has always been so frustrating for me. After taking these college
success classes I tend to understand a little bit more on how I can make my college life
a little bit easier through tips and tricks that I have been given along the way in this
class during the semester. One thing that has been a big takeaway from this class is
learning about identifying your goals and to learn how to goal set. I have always had so
many ideas in my mind of things that I want to do or experience throughout my young
years but I have never found a way to put them into action. After I learned about
SMART goals I put all of my ideas onto paper and am putting them into action. I learned
that no goal is out of reach as long as you are motivated and have a centered mind. The
tool that I used that I have learned from this class is SMART goal making. This is one of
the first goal setting tools that I have found useful. In all of my other college success
classes I have never found any goal setting tools that have stuck for me and that were
successful and motivational for me. It took a lot of study, trial and error for me to fully
understand how to get the best outcomes from this tool. After all of the trial and error it
definitely has been the greater outcome for myself and for my many ideas that I thought
were never going to be achieved. For the first step of using this tool it is very important
to ask questions to yourself to actually see if its a real goal that you want to overcome and accomplish. First I have to ask myself questions before I start mapping down my
SMART goal. Some of the questions that I ask myself are, am I motivated, does this
idea give purpose in my life or to me, where am I going and how am I going to get
there? Am I able to use my time management to achieve this goal? Does this goal
promote growth, happiness, and self-growth? Does this goal help my career or future
planning? After I ask myself these questions it is time for me to take action to write
down my ideas. SMART stands for Specific, measurable, achievable, relevant/realistic,
and time-bound. Having a specific goal has a better chance to be achieved, I have to
know exactly what will be accomplished. I have to also make sure my goal is
measurable, in order to make that happen establish a concrete criteria and half way
marks to show the progress of the goal. Always to make sure the goal is realistic and
achievable. Goals that are too high or too low tend to become meaningless and not as
motivational. One note that I found very useful in this topic in the module is that, “the
best goals are challenging but also not impossible.” Always make sure your goal is
relevant and realistic, goals should match up with values, short and long term plans.
And lastly, always make sure the goal is time-bound, assigning a “due date” for goals
makes them more realistic, actionable, and motivating. Ever since I have learned these
tools I have been putting them into my daily life and making my ideas that are stuck in
my head into actual actions with great results. I would definitely recommend this tool of
goal setting for anyone that is stuck on how to accomplish anything or to stay motivated.
After learning all of this in my class I have started mapping my plans to travel more to
countries that I have never been to. I have always wanted to explore different cultures
but I was always stuck in my head with ideas. Now I have a full mapped out SMARTgoal on how to travel. My first step is to take out a part of my paycheck each week to put into a savings that only goes towards my travels. In the next two months I will be
able to have enough money to travel to the destination that I have planned. I set time
stamps on when I need a certain amount of money and I have calculated how much
money and knowledge I need in order to continue my process to travel. It took a lot of
trial and error for me in order to fully understand how to map my ideas onto paper. After
watching a few videos and reading more notes on this tool I finally was able to
understand how to write a fully in depth plan on my ideas. It is such a good feeling being
able to learn a new tool to help me accomplish everything that I wanted to do in my life.
All I needed was the right idea, the right motivation, and a really good plan. At this
moment I am still working on how to keep being motivated even though it takes a lot of
progress to see outcomes. I tend to be very impatient when it comes to planning
because I want to see outcomes now. I have learned in order to stay motivated I need to
stick to time management and to always stay motivated. I do this by overlooking my
goals and to keep making progress little by little. I have never been more happy with
myself and my goals. I definitely recommend this to people that have all of those lost
thoughts in their minds with no tools to get them out into action.
Finding Success
I wasn’t sure what to expect from a counseling course. Would someone give me advice? Would I learn how to give others advice? This class turned out to be a little of both and helpful in many aspects of my life, both now and as I see in the future. From all the readings, videos, and assignments, I benefitted from many but will focus on the two most valuable and enjoyable. That would be from taking the Meyers Briggs Type Indicator Assessment (MBTI) and developing solid time management skills, not only with studying and doing my homework, but with sports, work, and my personal life, so I could be successful but remain sane.
The MBTI test results validated that I’m an introvert. This wasn’t too much of a surprise. My dad and older brother are both extroverts. I don’t have much in common with either of them, but I am attracted to people with these qualities, which is expected as I believe most of us look for friends or future mates opposite or different than ourselves. My girlfriend is a type A person, too. My mom and I are both laid-back, casual people in most situations. I say in most cases because I can be a bit more aggressive and straightforward in competitive sports. I always go with my gut, which has been accurate in most cases. Following my senses has worked best for me, so why change it? I try not to overthink things, as it can throw me off what is the best decision. On the other hand, my gut is precise and rarely fails – rarely, but it’s not failproof. I like to try new things and not always follow the rules, which can certainly come in handy with things like sports. I am compassionate and will try my best to do what is best for others. I put my family and friends first and like to make sure others are safe and happy. I think that’s an excellent way to be and will benefit me in my future endeavors. Being perceptive was the only new conclusion I learned about myself. I like to plan my day because it’s busy with work, sports and school, but when it’s my free time, which I don’t have much of, I guess I’m a bit more spontaneous than I would have concluded. Learning that I use my sensing more than intuition was the only surprise in the survey, but after reading a bit more about it, it makes a lot of sense.
This was fun to learn about myself and valuable when I saw how to apply my skills to how I did my homework, prepared for projects, and studied for tests. It also helped me work with people, which I do while playing a sport at OCC and when I work at Disneyland. Learning how I think, but also how and why others think the way they do, made it more evident that I could take what I learned about myself and others and handle challenging situations with a clearer head. Instead of being upset when someone is yelling – yes, this happens when you work at the happiest place on Earth, I’m sorry to report – I try to use the assessment and determine which of the categories an angry customer may be in and use introductory psychology to defuse the situation. So far, this has worked better than I thought, and I would not have learned about this skill, about myself, but about how others cope, without the MBTI, so it is undoubtedlybeneficial.
I also learned from the MBTI and the class better ways to take care of myself, physically and mentally, when trying to manage my time. This sounds easy but has been a struggle, especially with classes online. I wish I had learned these skills as a freshman, but I will use what I have learned in my next journey to UC Irvine and, I’m sure, with work and other future endeavors.
I learned that I need to plan things out where it fits best with my MBTI results in that I need time to myself to set reachable goals, plan how I can tackle my numerous schedules like school, sports, work, and keep my girlfriend, family, and friends as a top priority. I also need to be a bit more open when I’m stressed and need to defuse. I learned good ways to reach out when I need advice or guidance on something, that it’s good to know when you need it, and that it’s healthy to ask. I have reached out more to my OCC counselor this semester to learn what I need to prepare for UC Irvine and finish strong in my last few classes on this campus. Usually, I look for things online and hope I’m taking the suitablecourses. Still, this class has shown me where the resources are, which is excellent, but also how to communicate what I need from my family, friends, and counselors to be successful and happy during this hecticsemester. I feel like I am doing much better planning my workloads than last semester when things were scattered,and I felt like I was getting my work done right before the deadline, which contributed to significant amounts of stress. Now I use a planner for work, sports, and classes and try my best to stay ahead. This didn’t come quickly or easily. I’ve had to make a few adjustments for it to work for me but learning a bit about myself and what works for me from the MBTI assessment has helped me shape a solid time management planner and I feel more confident and less stressed with my workload.
Community College
Personally, I chose to attend community college because I literally had no idea what I
wanted to do, not even a clue as to my major. Being an only child with no siblings to help me
with my student loans, I was extremely precarious of racking up debt in a major I am not
confident in. My greatest fear was committing to a major I was not sure about at an expensive
university (in reality, all universities are expensive), then realizing that I had made a mistake
when I realized that I don’t really fit with my major, causing me to change majors and attend
school longer than the expected four years. Community college is the most affordable way to
obtain an education and a degree and in my opinion, the
lowest stakes with equal rewards. Undergraduate classes
taken in the first two years of any bachelors are mostly
introductory major courses and general education courses,
therefore, community college courses are exactly the same as
four-year university courses. The main difference is the
faculty to student ratio in classrooms as community colleges’
are much smaller and interpersonal than lecture-hall styles in
universities. Given that community college is such a low
risk, there is less pressure in having to commit to an area of
study, giving more freedom to explore options towards
building a career.
Now that you’ve made the decision to attend community college, it’s important to pick
which community college to enroll in. There definitely is a difference and you have the choice.
You’re probably attending knowing a general area of study you are interested in, whether it be
STEM, liberal arts, or performing arts– this is especially important if you’re considering
transferring as there is a difference amongst transfer rates between different community colleges.
Each community college has different transfer rates to different institutions, so look into that as
well– for example, there are a lot of transfers from Irvine Valley College to UC Irvine & a lot of
transfers from Pomona City College to UC Los Angeles (for computer science). I chose Orange
Coast College due to its unique Allied Health Programs, offering both certificates and Associates
of Sciences within their thirteen programs. I would also like to note that OCC has the highest
transfer rate in Orange County.
Once enrolled in the college, finish matriculation and orientation as soon as possible as
well as meet with a counselor. Meeting with a counselor is extremely important as they are there
to help you make a Student Education Plan (SEP) to map out your courses by semester based on
your area of interest. Don’t worry, this is just a plan and you’re not binded by it, you can always
meet with a counselor to make changes. Having a SEP is important as that will qualify you for
priority registration which makes a big difference when it comes to successfully enrolling in
classes you want or need. As a first semester student, you should definitely begin with your
prerequisite classes for your major, taking two hard classes at most, an easy class, and
counseling. For example, if you need a chemistry series for your major, definitely start taking
General Chemistry 1 in order to be eligible to take General Chemistry 2– these type of classes
are important to begin and pass. Secondly, it is an absolute must to take counseling to learn the
differences between highschool and college the easy way. No one is ever too good or too
knowledgeable not to take a counseling class. Highschool and college are extremely different
and do not be fooled thinking that having four classes instead of seven is going to be a breeze
with less lecture/class time. Lastly, do not use units as an example of how difficult or how much
work a class is going to take. Take only twelve units your first semester to allow yourself to
adjust, but be smart about the classes you are taking. For example, a four unit class of
Introduction to Biology compared to a four unit class of Critical Reasoning: Fiction (Writing) is
much different as there is more reading and writing. Courses such as History may have a lot of
reading or Mathematics may have a lot of problem sets and assignments to complete other than
just reviewing the material and studying. In my experience, four and five unit courses are a big
difference from three unit courses as some of the five-units include labs which in turn, can
almost be two separate classes as you must prepare for both lecture and labs, study for them
separately, and complete different assignments.
In terms of studying, it was briefly mentioned that highschool is vastly different from
college and to expand, college takes much more self initiative and discipline. Highschool
education is government mandated, therefore, teachers are concerned with preparing students
and passing them which means that teachers are more involved with guided studying. As a
highschool student, completing your homework and briefly reviewing the day before the test
should be enough, however, it will not be enough in college whatsoever. College does not assign
as much homework as highschool and it is by chapter instead of daily. Daily homework is daily
practice which makes it easier to learn and study, but since college homework is either due
weekly or every month, this causes a lot of students to procrastinate and do it all at once before
the exam, leaving them less time to study. Some college classes don’t even assign homework or
collect, therefore, it is not even in the gradebook to pad or buffer grades. It is up to you and you
alone to set up your own study schedule and allocate time to review the material. A side tip on
studying is that since homework is not collected everyday by teachers, it will be much easier to
do work in a separate spiral notebook. In my opinion, it is much more organized and neater than
having a bunch of loose leaf lined paper in a binder that will fill up and get heavy. More
importantly, reviewing your homework problems worked out is really helpful when doing the
review sheet for the exam. If your binder or looseleaf papers get lost or become unorganized, it
will be really hard to refresh your memory for the exam.
Lastly, one of my regrets during my freshman year of college about attending community
was that it felt that I was missing out on the dorm life that all my friends from high school got to
participate in. It was hard to see them have so much fun with their roommates and decorating the
dorms or joining sororities, but realistically, it’s just the rush of new things. Most college
students are excited to be out of the house with freedom, no curfew, and being able to party and
it’s really just the rush of new things. Although it can be fun, it’s really not all that and as a
junior, I barely see my friends that are posting about college anymore. As a community college
student, you can always hang out with your friends that are dorming or visit campus to party with
them, it’s not as if attending community cuts you off from those activities. One thing to
definitely note is that you should try to make friends in your classes and there’s nothing wrong in
putting in a little more effort as it’s harder than making friends in highschool or university. In
highschool, being that the class size is relatively small, it’s easy to start talking to someone who
is in a few of your classes and it is easier to make friends with your dorm neighbor or those you
see in the cafeteria all the time. College being so vast, it is unlikely that you will have the same
people in two classes, therefore, don’t be shy to reach out. It can be so helpful to have a friend to
ask questions (if class is canceled) or when an assignment is due. Be grateful that community is
very diverse in age and experience. During my years here, I’ve met graduate students,
entrepreneurs, and business owners who are all there for different reasons, but have all given me
different perspectives and advice not only about school, but about careers.
Overall, community was the best choice for me although I did not fully feel that way in
the beginning. Looking back, I have no regrets and am very secure and financially content.
Money and Wellness
For me personally I think the money matter and wellness topic is very important. I can apply these materials to my own life but using a budgeting app to help keep track of my expenses. As a college student your income is very limited, most people can only work part time jobs or not work at all and focus solely on school. Which is why having good money management skills are so important
If I don’t use any of these strategies I would be overspending and have no fund set aside if an emergency happens. When I first attended OCC I was a bit lost, I knew I wanted to go into the medical field but I didn't specifically know what specialty. It was after attending different classes I realized I was drawn to psychology.
Time Management
Time management and Motivation
The concepts acquired in the course were essential in enhancing my ability to transition into college. I used the class materials to acquire an insight on the process of transitioning to an OCC college. Prior, to undertaking this class, I had minimal understanding of the college life and the way a person can ensure success at the college level. In this case, my expectations about college life and engagement were extensively different from the reality. As such, most of the class materials played a key role in highlighting the major challenges that first generation college students face and the different approaches to overcome such challenges. The chapter reading provided essential information about different ideas that influence human behavior in terms of motivation, personality and values, time management and the process of learning. I used the reading material to identify the best approaches to attaining success in college such as ensuring concentration and understanding of the different concepts taught in class.
In addition, I used the videos provided in the class to acquire an insight into some of the internal and external aspects that affect a person’s ability to engage in different activities in college. The application of the class materials in real life was essential in enabling me to successfully interact and integrate with the college environment. In this case, I applied the ideas presented in the YouTube videos by different students about college life. In one of the videos, the students give information about their first college experiences regarding managing the independence that accompanies college and the new social environment. As such, I used the concept provided by these students manage my affairs in college. In terms of time management, the ideas provided in the videos were essential to my success in developing and adhering to a personal schedule that incorporated both personal and academic activities in order to ensure balance and success in different aspects of life.
Time management and motivation are extensively influenced by an individual’s background and experience. In this context, personal values play a key role in developing and upholding a personal time management plan. I was able to understand this topic based on my cultural, personal identity and experiences in the contexts of time management and motivation. From a personal identity perspective, I was able to understand that motivation is significantly influenced by my values. As such, the identity that I have created through cultural and social experiences have shaped my ability to establish little elements that can facilitate and promote motivation. My personality can be described in terms of openness. This personality trait has extensively been shaped by my cultural and family background. I grew up in a society that embraced the need for openness in terms of appreciating absorbing ideas. In this case, I believed that the ideas presented by other people through the videos and the readings regarding time management and management could also be applied in my case in terms of embracing the succeeding through college.
The first college experience could be quite challenging especially for an international student. However, my ability to be open regarding different suggestions and advice provided through the videos and readings, I was able to understand that college life requires a person to be flexible. In addition, my personality and background enabled me to go through all the videos and readings with minimal judgment of the presenter’s age and experience of college life. While most of the videos were presented in a funny approach, they contained substantial important information that would enhance my success at the college. The other videos were presented on a platform where most people would judge as credible because of the motivation behind some of the videos on such platforms. However, understanding such information was critical to my ability to manage time and establish some aspects of motivation throughout the course and college.
Time management and motivation function together towards ensuring effective attainment of personal and professional goals. By understanding the course content based on reading the materials and watching the YouTube videos given, I was able to develop a time management plan. In this case, the plan was essential to ensuring that I would complete all my tasks within the appropriate time. In addition, a time management plan eliminated any instances of procrastination in terms of the completing the course work, attending social events, and engaging in other crucial events in college. In addition, the time management plan allowed me to explore other additional agendas that would enhance my college success such as interacting with professionals in my target field of study.
In the case of motivation, understanding the course materials was essential in enabling me to understand my key sources of motivation. Motivation is important to ensuring a strong adherence to personal and academic goals and routine in college. As such, identifying the motivation factors helped me to focus on the college goals through reducing instances that could hinder success such as poor time management, and spending less time on my academic work. Also, after reading the class materials, I was able to understand the effect of my personality on motivation, such that I could integrate these values in my daily engagement and maintain optimal levels of motivation for college success.
The class was one of my best academic experiences because it provided important ideas about succeeding college. College is quite challenging for new students, especially those the foreign students. In my case, without the ideas and information acquired from the class, it would be extensively difficult to maneuver through college in my first year. The ideas and advice provided through the class readings and videos helped me to establish strong social networks, adapt to the college life and also focus on achieving both personal and academic goals.
Concentration and Distraction
The chapter I chose for this reflection is, “Concentration and Distraction”. The entirety of this
chapter has helped me in a lot of ways. One being, how and when I study. I was not a solid college
student in my previous attempts at school but learning and adapting my studying to what is required for
school has helped me tremendously. I wake up early every day, regardless of if I have work or not, to
work on my school and daily responsibilities. This has not only a tremendous effect on my work, but my
mindset as well. There is a sense of achievement when waking up early and getting your work done, plus
the added benefit of having the rest of your day to work on other things or relax. This mindset and
routine are something I wish I knew when I was younger, but I suppose learning it the way I did was
needed.
Distractions is another thing that I’ve been working on as well. There are two types of distractions,
internal and external. Internal distractions come in the from your own thought process, self-esteem, or
one’s own confidence. This self-doubt and harmful thought processes can have a negative effect on your
work output and work quality and is something that I needed to work on. Meditating and taking the
time out of my day to address these concerns is something that has helped me set these distractions
aside when needed, like when I do my schoolwork. Even my phone can be considered an internal
distraction considering it is controlled by me, and when I am doing my work, I set it aside and don’t
touch it unless necessary while I do my work. These tools have helped me tremendously on
concentration. Along with internal distractions, I had to work on minimizing my outside distractions as
well. I work in a separate room, which I leave completely silent and isolated while I do my work. I take
breaks in between hours of work to reset myself. Doing this has drastically improved how much work I
can get done at a given time, and the quality of it.
Multitasking is something I try to avoid. When I work on something I try to work on it till a big
chunk of it is done, and then I can divert my time to some other project or complete it all together.
Switching back and forth interrupts the focus I have on an assignment and is not something I ever do. In
doing this, I have seen benefits not only in my school life, but in my life in general. I accomplish less,
even though it may feel like I’m accomplishing more by multitasking. Having the ability to focus solely on
one thing at a time, especially in school, is super important to me.
Another chapter I found helpful, is chapter 11, and the focus on being healthy all around. This
involves physical health, emotional health, mental health, and maintaining healthy relationships. This
semester I started working out regularly, which is something I have always done off and on, but with my
filled schedule with work and full-time school I always had a hard time constantly finding the will to go
work out. Once I started this semester, I challenged myself to find time and get outdoors, going on hikes
multiple times a week. Although the hikes are only about 3 miles, finding this time to get outside and
breath fresh air not only is good for my physical health, but my mental health as well. I find being
outside in the hills by my house very relaxing and am finding joy in physical exercise. Not only has this
helped with keeping myself responsible, but it has had affects in more aspects of my life. Such as, eating
healthy to accompany this exercise. Both of these things in turn create a healthy and clear headspace
for me when I do my schoolwork. Especially with being stuck inside for so long due to the pandemic,
getting outside and moving has been a great habit I have developed this semester, backed up by this
chapter it has only motivated me more to keep these habits going.
The healthy eating chapter was eye-opening. Although I knew eating healthy literally has no downsides,
finding the energy to do it was harder to find. Choosing whole foods, over refined and processed foods
was an easy adaption for me, considering the benefits. These choices not only shaped my health but had
such an improvement on my energy and mental health. As with everyone, during the pandemic my
mental health was going downhill, and I needed a change in my life to help counter this. Clearing my
mind with these new habits has not only helped with my groggy cloudy mental state and energy, but has
had direct effects on my schooling.
Along with eating healthy, regularly getting outside for exercising has felt like it has changed me
the most. Knowing that these activities help with my flexibility, strength, and most importantly my
cardiovascular health is a major driving factor in doing them. These habits are something that everyone
should try tog et into, and something I wish I regularly did years and years ago. They have rippled into
my everyday life and have improved it in every single way, giving me more energy and drive.
Another chapter that has had a profound effect on my life, is chapter 3, and time management.
This issue is one I have known has been a problem for me for a long time. I struggle to find the
appropriate amount of time to do things, and to juggle everything I need to do correctly. This is
something I still struggle with, but has been improved by this course. There is a high cost of poor time
management, as stated by the textbook. Not spending enough time on things, or dividing the right
amount of time between things has a “domino effect” on the rest of your life. Going from a more
structured K-12, college is up to you, and what you make it. There is no one there to help you and make
sure you stay on tract, and is a defining moment in peoples lives. I have in the past, failed at this
transition, but this time I feel confident in myself. I know I want to be in school now, versus feeling like I
was forced to before, which is a revelation that has improved every aspect of my schooling. Spending
enough time outside the classroom, or class time, on learning is just as important as the time you spend
in class. A lot of the learning I have to do myself, and this has helped me with being responsible and
keeping on track with everything. Although I still fail at this sometimes, it has drastically improved. Some
things I can do better, is properly schedule my time and what I need to do each day. I have schedules set
up for this, but fail on deadlines occasionally, and is something that I need to work on and improve. All
of these chapters have been profoundly helpful in my journey. Being self-aware of the things I need to
work on is just as important as the assignments. Thank you for a great semester, and all of the
knowledge you have passed along to us.
Time Management
My future wasn’t always clear about who I needed to be or what I wanted to do but I knew that I could count on myself to get up and go to school. Whether I was having a breakdown or just not up to it, my education posed as a distraction for me to take a break from the outside and focus on something. As someone who has had a few hiccups in the past with school, time management was always hard for me. From being embarrassed in front of other classmates and being called out by others as well it added onto the stress of my life. I always stressed when it was time for a project or studying for a test. It was “easier” to put it off instead of doing it. This created a very bad habit that stuck with me in middle school until now really. High school was really hard for me to adjust to with the minimal homework in middle school to longer papers and bigger projects really mad it hard especially because I could get away with my procrastination in middle school. This led me to getting failing grades, academic probation, and summer school. I was on the verge of going to a continuation school by my sophomore year. After bad grade upon bad grade this ultimately led to my decision to come to Orange Coast College. In November of 2020 my 6 person household was diagnosed with COVID-19 this drastically took effect on mental health and my health. I started making this worse by putting things off, not speaking with a counselor and not doing my homework.
One of the things I learned while trying to routinely manage my time was that like most things time management is a process. You need to find a way to become consistent and you will grow from there. That was the key thing that I had issues with. Consistency was something I was lacking like I would be doing so well one week and the next week I fall back into the same habit I was doing before and it really became exhausting for me. Just because of this I have certain things to help keep me on track I synced all my calendars between my laptop and phone for school along with adding my new work schedule. I started to limit my online distractions even little things like a new notification anytime I am doing homework my phone and laptop are on do not disturb this really helps me because I am one to sit and watch tiktok for hours but this has also helped my sleep pattern and overall how I feel in the morning. One thing that I couldn't do was take breaks or have “me time” weird I know but this made everything worse because once I take more than a 5 minute break I begin to do something else and this messed up the momentum for me almost always. I also like to set time limits on how long each assignment should take and doing that throughout the week really helps with my progress especially when writing papers.
There is this really cool technique I love to do and its called the Eisenhower Matrix named after Dwight Eisenhower. They said he created this when he was dealing with World War II to help him delegate and prioritize tasks. So basically you can draw this up or separate it with colors on a calendar like I did. So you choose 4 colors or draw 4 squares and you would categorize them by do, schedule, delegate and eliminate. You would mark things accordingly in these categories by urgent or important. This helped me with dues dates, papers, projects and homework this also helped me realize that somethings in my outside world did not need to be put first and it helped eliminate small things. One app I love using is Momentum Dash this is something I downloaded on my dashboard and it also shows me a to do list on my internet browser and when you pull up a new tab it reminds you of what you need to be doing. After this technique and this app I took pride in getting things done and turning them in. I am still working on my consistency but it is definitely getting better and overall I just dont feel down or stressed out all of the time. I think time management is very important and should be a main goal for everyone to master and achieve.
Values & the MBTI Assessment
When I was in highschool I struggled significantly with academics. I was diagnosed with ADD and was failing almost every class besides my electives and sports. Due to my struggles with academics school always brought on anxiety for me and I always felt as I wasn’t good enough or smart enough to finish and get a degree. What I did excel at was softball and thought my only way to college would be through an athletic scholarship. I ended going to a community college right out of highschool due to not knowing what i wanted to do with my life yet or what my passions were.. I played softball at the community college and excelled in the sport but as I did just in highschool I struggled with academics and after my 2 years at the junior college I decided to stop going to school and work full time. I worked many jobs just getting by until I had experiences in my life that led me to my current job as a social worker for Mental Health. I have finally found my passion and have been excelling at my job for the last 3 years. This is what led me to ultimately go back to school as now I know what I want to pursue my career in and I am passionate about it. I decided to start at OCC as I still had some classes I needed to take before transfer to a UC which is my goal. I decided to take the COUN A105 to gain some more knowledge and support about succeeding in college as it had been many years since I had been out of school, and I was feeling anxious due to my past struggles with academics.
There were two lessons in this class that really resonated with me and I felt like I gained a lot of support and confidence from. The first lesson was learning our values. Values are basic and fundamental beliefs that guide or motivate us, they help us to determine what is important to us. This was extremely important and helpful for me as for years I struggled in school and really felt like I had no drive or purpose. After doing the activity where you found your top three values it put things more in perspective for me. I always knew what was important but this activity just laid it out more clearly. It helped to see my end goal and why I need to stay focused even when things may get difficult. My values provide my reason and motivation to continue forward with my schooling. In my life now I am married and have a daughter, Family is one of my top three values. My family it what drives me to succeed. I want to be able to show my daughter that you can find your passion at any time in your life and that you can always go back and try again in something you may have not succeeded in before.
The second lesson that stood out to me was the MBTI Assessment. MBTI helps you to learn more about your personality preference and how they relate to your career. Currently I am already in the beginning of my career working as a social worker however there are many different direction it could go. After receiving my results back it showed me that not only is social worker something that would be a good career for my personality type but also working in Mental health which has become a passion of mine. This solidified that I am doing what I am meant to be doing in my life and that I am headed in the right direction.. I already felt that way as I am passionate about my work but there are times where I wonder if there is something else I should be doing or if I would be better in a different career. I am thankful for the MBTI assessment as not only did it solidify my direction but I also learned about how I can use certain parts of my personality to my advantage and areas where I can improve and grow.
I am happy that I took COUN A105 as one of my first courses back in school. I learned a lot and it helped me feel comfortable coming back to college. The Values and MBTI assessment is something I wish I could go back and teach my younger self, it was hard for me to see and purpose or find any drive to succeed at the time. After taking many years off from school and working jobs that provided me no fulfillment or purpose I am happy to be able to say I have found my passion and now know what degree I need in order to support my career. I wish I could have taken this course when I was younger however, I am not sure I would have received it the same way as I have now after all the struggles and experiences I have had. I feel this course is not only positive for incoming student that came from high school but also for the new student who is deciding to come back to college, or the student who is unsure of what direction they want to go in. I am thankful I decided to take this course.
Goal Setting, Stress Management & Time Management
This is my first year at Orange Coast College. This is consider to be a new chapter in my life after high school and it seems to be harder than I expected it to be. Back in high school, my academic ability would be around average, I wasn’t the smart kid in class and I knew it before already, that academic isn’t my strongest suit. You could say that I did struggle a bit with classes that my friends or others consider to be easy. I never really have an interest in studying and always seems to get sidetrack or distracted by other things when I was supposed to be focus on studying, and that really hinder with my academic process, which led to my grades dropping or not looking the best. Another problem that I noticed that I have throughout high school is my time/schedule management which had caused me to several stressing moments that could have been avoided easily if I were to manage my time better and not slack off. I personally find it really hard to balance the time for school, work, family, friends, working out, and relationships which had caused to me to me stop talking to some people, losing some friends, or getting into arguments with my family due to not having the time to interact with them, which got even worse when the pandemic happened. I never had a good relationship with my family in the first place due to miscommunication, misfortune events, and our personalities which got even worse when I had to stay home most of the time when quarantine was enacted to prevent the disease from spreading. At one point around last year, I realize that my I don’t have my life together at all and there are things that need to be done in order to get my life together again. It was then that at the started this year I made up my mind to improve my life, and after I finished high school that I got word of an upperclassman about a class that would be able to assist me in my process of improve my life, and that’s why I’m in Counseling A105.
Throughout this course, I have learned and acquired many skills that are quite useful in the long running and would prepare me for my future classes, maybe even career. One of them that sticks out to me is goal-setting which also include strategies to stay motivated during week 3, which is something that I desperately need. Some of the important ways that I learned were to put your goals/plans and set achievable steps that needed to be complete in order onto paper so that you wouldn’t forget. You must also need to also keep track of your progress and set a due date so that you would be able to stay on track, also remember to celebrate the small little successes so you would be able to stay motivated for the rest of the way. On that note, the best way for you to stay motivated is to surround yourself with supportive people who would be willing to help you out and set you up for success, and for that to happen you would also need to have a positive attitude/mindset so that you wouldn’t give up when facing failure or challenges.
Another incredibly important lessons that I learned during week 4, that is time, stress, and health management, one of the problems that I’ve been struggling with the most for the longest time. As I mentioned before in the story of my past, I’ve never been an organized person and that include my schedule and time management which has caused me to lose a lot of people who I hold dear to my heart. During that week I’ve learned to get rid of distractions and other relationships that are not beneficial to me in order to reduce stress and gain the extra time and effort that I could have put into more useful things. I also learned to prioritize my time to more important and beneficial tasks or people rather than entertainment or toxic people who only hinder my growth and development. I also realized that mental and physical health is also a very important factor that need to be keep in check so that you would have enough energy to take care of yourself and tackle all of your challenges. That is definitely be something that I would recommend to myself because I’ve been neglecting my physical and mental health since middle school because I deem them to not be important, however, after I decide to improve both of them, my mind and body were better than before which prepare me better for the upcoming challenges.
If I could give an advice to my past self, I would advise myself cut back on the entertainment, try to improve my mental health, and don’t blame everything onto someone else. I realize that I’ve been running away from my problems for too long and I should take care of them rather than ignoring them because they would only get worse over time. This class have taught me many things that would probably stick with me for the rest of my life and that there is always room for improvement, a chance to be the better person, and that nothing is impossible with commitment and effort.
Staying Motivated & Growth Mindset
I am a student athlete here at OCC. In high school I would have never thought I would be playing baseball at a junior college. It’s every little kid’s dream to play any division 1 sport then go on to play professionally. So naturally that's what I thought I would be doing. Growing up, I always used that for motivation to get better at baseball. When I got to high school that was when I started to realize just playing baseball and neglecting my studies would not allow me to play during the season. That led to me making my main motivation to excel in school, but only to remain eligible for the baseball season. I didn’t set my goals very high, which resulted in the bare minimum each semester.
In my first and second semester here at Orange Coast, I failed my classes miserably. It was the first time I had to live on my own, try to balance school, and a collegiate sport. After getting redshirted during the baseball season, I didn’t set any intentions for myself to stay on track and to get better. I can admit that I had no responsibility over my priorities and never stopped myself before it got worse. I practiced, traveled, and did everything the rest of the team did besides play in games. I’d felt extremely discouraged being on the team and not being able to be apart of the main part of the sport. I didn’t take any initiative towards my personal priorities so I would always say things such as, “I don’t feel like it” or “I’ll do it later” to avoid those responsibilities which lead to my lack of motivation. Throughout the rest of the year plus the summer season, turned into a huge drag for me. During week 3 of this course, I learned more about motivation tactics and was introduced to the growth mindset. Staying motivated throughout a long baseball season is very important but very difficult to maintain when priorities aren’t straight.
This semester I found ways to keep myself motivated and on pace to achieve my goals. My goals were no longer to just barely get by, but to surpass the expectations. I incorporated daily affirmations, gratitude practices, reminders of what I’m capable of. These helped me stay motivated to recognize the progress I’ve made and the main reason why I started to take this more seriously than I’ve been in the past. I tend to not recognize my strengths, capabilities, and progress because I would feel like I was being arrogant and not humble. However, through these lessons, I learned that it’s important to realize these things because it shows my growth and my drive towards this sport which I found was essential to my personal growth. It’s super encouraging when your surrounded by people that strive for similar goals and my roommate is a great example. Being able to observe how organized and determined he is to reach his goals, made me take a step back to realize if I’m doing enough for myself. This can easily be turned into self-doubt as we can compare ourselves to others, but I allowed myself to see it in a different perspective. I find that maintaining a positive demeanor while creating realistic intentions keeps me going especially during difficult times. The growth mindset helped me realize that there is always room for improvement. No matter how hard or how simple, I’m capable of anything if I put my mind to it. This semester, I made sure to create a huge shift in my attitude towards school and baseball to maximize all of the opportunities I receive to my fullest potential.
If I were to go back my first semester at Orange Coast College, I would tell myself to take COUN105 in the first semester. The lessons that I have learned throughout this course, have immensely benefited me to navigate my way through the school and aid me to keeping my life outside of school organized. With the knowledge this class has given me, I believe I could be the student I’ve always strived to become.
Staying motivated and practicing the growth mindset has shaped me into a better person than I was before I took this course. Taking this course is one of the best decisions I have made here at OCC. I will continue to work to be the best version of myself and implement these lessons in my life.
Prioritizing Myself
I remember back when I was around 15 or 16, I realized that I loved filling my schedule and staying busy. I had something going on every weekend, from camps, church activities, lion dancing, etc. I remember, how good it felt to not be able to overthink and be stuck in my thoughts. I’d rather keep busy than be free with my thoughts. After Covid hit, I realized how that was making my mental health worse. I shoved down all my emotions in hopes that what I was doing would make me happy. It didn’t at all. I became so numb inside because I ignored how I was feeling physically and mentally. I think how I really wore rose colored glasses in a way. I showed people the highlights of my life, and even tried to convince myself that my life was good.
Going through college during Covid, I realized how burnt out and tired I was of life. School wasn’t helping it, being isolated. I was looking for different ways to cope with it. Binge watching, reading, anything I could do at home to keep me company. It took me around 2 years to realize that I was making myself feel even worse than before Covid. I was in a toxic environment and didn’t even know that I was. This environment was not only something I had created for myself, but what others around me helped create. Some of the things I did were also so toxic,and I stayed because I hate change. I didn’t want to confront it.Eventually during Covid, I did cut off some of those commitments, and felt very negative inside still. I hated the fact that it was all coming at once and I couldn’t express or let my feelings out.
When the semester started and I was going through the modules, I realized that these simple concepts were so important. I started reflecting and applying some of the things we were learning to my everyday schedule. I learned so much of myself not only as a student, but also as a person. I realized that taking care of myself is the most important thing of all. Looking back, I didn’t look after myself, and that was probably what was hurting me the most. It wasn’t all the different commitments and events that I piled onto my plate. I feel that back then if I had taken care of my physical and mental health, my anxiety wouldn’t have been so high leveled. I started to show myself the patience and focus that I lacked when I was younger, and I slowly started to heal and feel better. Better can be and look different for many. It doesn’t look the same to everyone. But for me, just learning what type of student I am and knowing my limitations is progress for me.
As a student, I get overwhelmed easy because I procrastinate. But I started to set little goals for myself where I would space out all my assignments, quizzes, and projects. Slowly working that goal, I felt way more accomplished because I would finish something everyday so I didn’t have so much on one day and fall behind. Even though it got hard at some points because my schedule got so crazy, I still managed to get the work done. If you learn what type of student you are, it helps a lot because you know your strengths and weaknesses. Learning how to be patient with my education and myself is a proud moment of mine.
Putting myself first in my commitments and obligations, was a big change but a successful one as well. I used to have this mindset that once it’s on my plate, I have to do it to the best of my abilities without stop. I realized how unhealthy that was, and this year coming back, I took on the mindset of myself over everything. It took a lot of tears and sadness before I changed, but it really has been for the best. It sounds very selfish to others. But seeing how I feel way more confident in myself and my abilities, it’s truly so amazing. I know when to say no to things I cannot handle, and say yes to things I can handle and feel good about. This class has helped confirm and assure me that cutting off the toxic things is a big accomplishment and I shouldn’t beat myself down about it.
I feel that this is so all over the place like my thoughts, but what I want to say is: Take care of yourself. Put your wellbeing before everyone, and everything will fall into place. If you’re happy and healthy, you’ll have that positive mindset.
I remembering reading this book back in high school and even though I couldn’t figure out why it resonated with me, but I carried it in my mind and heart. Growth really is a process, but once you figure it out, it makes things way easier.
Building Accountability
I am first year student at OCC and this is my narrative. I never thought I would actually end up in college and am really proud of myself for making it this far. In highschool I struggled alot especially throughout Covid-19. Covid took a huge tool on my mental health and not being in person for school took a huge toll on my grades and habits. I became really unfocused and basically failed out of my sophomore and junior year of highschool. WHen we eventually went back for my senior year I noticed that I had lost all study habits, and had no idea how to function in a real class setting after two years over zoom. I found it really hard to number one play catch up from the prior years and also find a way to slide by my senior year to graduate on time. I became super stressed and had created a resentment towards school and just learning overall. But also at this time I was suffering severely and my mental health was at an all time low. Trying to find a way to do my school work and even just show up to school had become incredibly hard for me. But nevertheless I somehow graduated, I think my teachers partially just felt bad for me. But my parents had always wanted me to go to college but never required it since my dad did drop out and I never saw it as necessary since he was the main income of the household and super successful. But they gave me an option, either go to college or find something that i'm passionate about to do with my life. At that time I didn't really have any passions, since I barely even left my room unless it was for my minimum wage job at a pizza place. SO it seemed like my choice was college. And now I moved out and am a full time student at OCC. My counselor suggested this class because I had expressed my concerns about how my work ethic might affect my life in college. SHe suggested this class and I am very happy she did.
This semester I was given many tools to introduce new techniques of studying and forming good habits that will benefit me. I got introduced to the concept of a growth mindset and a new way to keep myself motivated. I now use daily affirmations, mindfulness and gratitude practices. I recently got a gratitude journal and I have to log what I am grateful for and a list of other things and the beginning and end of each day. This has made me realize how truly blessed I am and how I shouldn’t take things for granted like I did in the past. I now look at my two years in quarantine as a learning and growing experience instead of being trapped in my house with nothing to do. It took me a while but I now realize how much I truly learned about myself and the fact I entered and left quarantine two different people.’
I also learned that I need to hold myself accountable and it doesn't always have to be a bad thing. Holding myself accountable can mean for my losses and procrastination but also congratulating myself on my wins. Creating a constant routine and schedule is what helped me alot as well. Waking up at the same time every morning, despite if I have anything to do or not, has been a game changer. I have always slept in so late until I started forcing myself to wake up and get things done. It has helped tremendously in my journey on bringing back my work ethic back, when it comes to school. Being motivated also led me on a journey of self discovery because to keep myself motivated I have too believe in myself. And coming from someone who has struggled with confidence their whole life and always finds the worst things to think of themself, it meant alot to me.
Discovering this new found confidence in school and just day-to-day life has become extremely beneficial and has gave me a new interest in school I never thought I would have found within myself. And it is because of the lessons I have learned throughout this class including test taking tips, the growth mindset, motivation tips and time management/stress management.
Procrastination has always been a really bad habit of mine and I always tend to do things last minute (including this, finals week taking a toll lol). But throughout the stress and time management modules and lesson I learned new tips to keep me stay on track and everything in on time and completed to my best ability. I have really taken a liking to the Pomodoro Technique, which is when you study for say 30 minutes and take a 10 minute break and study for another 30 and keep going until you understand the material. I also use the tip, “daily highlight”. It gives you one main focus of the day and something to kind of force yourself to proritize. And for me that has been a game changer because it gives me one main focus and something to put my mind too to get done.
Throughout this class I have learned alot, but the tips that I will continue to use and have genuinely impacted my life for the better, seemed to be the biggest standout for me. They have improved my mental health, even if thatt wasn’t the target outcome and have made my education experience more pleasant and I am very grateful for that and the lessons this class taught me. I am extremely grateful my counselor requested I take this class and will recommend it to anyone who asks, there is a lesson to learn for everyone in their own paths of life, and I believe it genuinely can make a lasting impact on someone who takes it.